When politicians fail to convincingly present their achievements before the people, they often turn to innocent children for political messaging, largely because children cannot counter-question or critically challenge narratives placed before them. It is against this backdrop that the Kerala Communist government has conducted the Chief Minister’s Mega Quiz programme, where several questions reportedly carry predefined answers favouring Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his government’s schemes and initiatives.
What makes this exercise particularly striking is the manner in which several Central government programmes and initiatives associated with the Prime Minister have been rebranded as Chief Minister-led schemes.
Any project bearing the “PM” tag appears to be an anathema to the Kerala Communist government.
For the CPM-led Left Democratic Front (LDF), any Central project prefixed with ‘PM’ is clearly not music to its ears.
However, if the same project is reintroduced with a ‘CM’ prefix, it is welcomed with broad smiles.
The LDF government in Kerala seems to have mastered the art of replacing ‘PM’ with ‘CM’ and presenting it before the people without an iota of shame or regret. This practice is not limited to projects alone but extends even to awards and trophies.
The Chief Minister’s Mega Quiz started on January 12 stands out as a textbook example of this approach.
Of the 30 questions posed in the school-level preliminary round, as many as 21 were directly linked to the achievements of LDF governments over the years.
Sixteen of these reportedly revolved around policies, announcements, or projects launched between 2016 and 2026.
In contrast, the achievements of veteran Chief Minister and CPM leader E.M.S. Namboodiripad were reduced to just two questions, one of which had to be shared with Congress veteran Chief Minister R. Sankar. Another veteran CPM Chief Minister, E.K. Nayanar, was allotted two questions, while former Chief Minister and influential CPM leader V.S. Achuthanandan received just one.
Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) governments, which ruled Kerala alternately for several years, together accounted for only three questions. Detailing such quiz programmes and their apparent imbalance could easily fill volumes.
Criticism filling the political atmosphere points out that “the quiz is not designed to test students’ knowledge, but to boost the image of Pinarayi Vijayan”.
Meanwhile, several other initiatives under the Education and Higher Education Departments prominently bear the Chief Minister’s name. The Lower Primary Scholarship and Upper Secondary Scholarship examinations, conducted for Classes 4 and 7 for several years, were renamed “CM Kids” during the last Budget. While the name was changed, allocations to clear pending scholarship arrears reportedly remained inadequate.
Similarly, a Gold Trophy for the overall champions of the State School Sports Mela has been instituted this year in the Chief Minister’s name.
It was presented by Kerala Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, as the Chief Minister was abroad at the time. In the higher education sector, schemes such as the Chief Minister’s Nav Kerala Post Doctoral Fellowship, Chief Minister’s Research Scholarship, and Chief Minister’s Scholarship have also been instituted.
The Physical Education Department, too, has found a place within the expanding list of “Chief Minister Schemes”. The Physical Education Policy Declaration of 2022 announced the launch of the Chief Minister’s Trophy for popular sports such as cricket, football, kabaddi, volleyball, and hockey. However, the initiative has reportedly not progressed beyond the declaration stage.
This trend continued with the launch of “CM Connect to Work” by the Labour Department, aimed at providing financial assistance to students pursuing skill development or preparing for competitive examinations.
Earlier, only police medals bore the Chief Minister’s name, but later, a trophy for the best police station was also instituted under the Chief Minister’s title.
The above examples highlight how the LDF government has consistently sought to showcase itself through projects and initiatives prominently branded with the Chief Minister’s name.
Summing up the criticism, Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheeshan remarked that for the majority of quiz questions, the answer appears to be just one name — Pinarayi Vijayan.
